Wait times reduced by 10% at Dubai International Airport

Dubai Airports, operator of Dubai International Airport in the UAE, has reported that passenger wait times at the airport have dropped by as much as 10% during the first quarter of 2017 thanks to the installation of a new motion sensor system and the incorporation of the Emirates ID card service with its 120 smart gates.

For the first three months of 2017, results showed that 84% of transfer passengers were processed within five minutes, 68% of arriving passengers were processed within 15 minutes, and 87% of departing passengers were processed within 10 minutes.

The smart gates, combined with the recently implemented Emirates ID card service, have pushed down transaction times to an average of 10 to 15 seconds per passenger. Completely free of charge and requiring no pre-registration, the Emirates ID service helps to expedite the immigration and security process for UAE nationals. Since its introduction last year more than 1.3 million UAE users have taken advantage of the service.

Alongside the smart gates, the motion sensor system enables the airport to track queues in real time using approximately 530 sensors installed throughout terminals 1 and 3. The sensors track the movement of passengers, collecting and computing valuable data such as wait times and queue lengths. The data is then conveyed via an app to more than 5,000 operational staff working at the airport. The installation of the technology in Terminal 2 is scheduled to take place during 2017.

Frank McCrorie, senior vice president of operations at Dubai Airports, said, “This automated system provides us with faster and more accurate data, meaning that the operations team and other organizations now have a bird’s eye view of bottlenecks, enabling them to better manage staffing levels and lanes, and improve the overall customer experience. We have more work to do in this area, but we are pleased with progress to date.”

The access to historical, day-to-day, month-on-month data also means Dubai Airports’ planning teams can identify trends and predict problems before they occur. The analysis has enhanced collaborative decision making between stakeholders and boosted service levels.

About Author

Dan joined Passenger Terminal World in 2014 having spent the early years of his career in the recruitment industry. As assistant editor, he now produces daily content for the website and supports the editors with the publication of each exciting new issue. When he’s not reporting on the latest aviation news, Dan can be found apprehensively planning his next DIY project.